Oxford-AstraZeneca’s Coronavirus Vaccine trials halted: Here is what happened to the volunteer

Coronavirus vaccine latest update: Back in July this year, Oxford-AstraZeneca’s study had to be stopped for several days after a participant who got the vaccine developed neurological symptoms.  (Reuters image)

Coronavirus vaccine latest update: Oxford-AstraZeneca’s COVID19 vaccine candidate is considered as the front runner in the race to develop the elusive panacea against prevalent SARS-CoV-2. However, apprehensions have been raised after Oxford-AstraZeneca had to hold the Phase 3 human trial of the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19-AZD 1222 for the second time in two months.

AstraZeneca’s spokesman Matthew Kent said a woman, who was inoculated with ChAdOx1 nCoV-19-AZD 1222 vaccine, developed severe neurological symptoms that prompted a pause in testing, as per AP report. More tests are being done now as part of the follow-up, Kent was quoted as saying by AP.

Meanwhile, AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot held a private conference call with investors revealed that the woman volunteer who fell ill did not have a confirmed diagnosis yet. However, she was improving and was on course to be discharged from hospital, Soriot was quoted as saying by UK media.

Earlier, Soriot had asserted that despite the company pausing Phase 3 clinical trials of the vaccine, the vaccine could still be ready by the end of 2020. However, Soriot mentioned that the timetable for vaccine progress will depend upon the progress of a safety review into the trial subject.

Back in July this year, Oxford-AstraZeneca’s study had to be stopped for several days after a participant who got the vaccine developed neurological symptoms. Later it turned out to be an undiagnosed case of multiple sclerosis that was unrelated to the vaccine, as per AP report. AstraZeneca began recruiting 30,000 people in the US for its largest study of the vaccine. It is testing the vaccine in thousands of people in the UK, Brazil, South Africa, and India.

American Health industry news website STAT, which broke the news of AstraZeneca holding the Phase 3 clinical trial of its Coronavirus vaccine candidate, stated the progress of development will slow down by the safety concern. This is a set back for AstraZeneca and Oxford and their efforts to develop a vaccine against Coronavirus. However, it is not uncommon in a large clinical trial. AstraZeneca researchers conducting a safety investigation supervised by the company’s Data and Safety Monitoring Board that monitors the participants.

World Health Organization’s chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan said the UN health agency wasn’t overly concerned by the pause in the Oxford and AstraZeneca vaccine trial, describing it as “a wake-up call” to the global community about the inevitable ups and downs of medical research. Temporary holds of large medical studies aren’t unusual, and investigating any serious or unexpected reaction is a mandatory part of safety testing.